Curse Writer’s Block

boredom due to inability to do anything at all

burying head in hands

clenching teeth

dizziness when standing up

dropping head back

finally crashing and sleeping the entire day

fumbling with a package of painkillers and struggling to get past the child safety

groaning quietly

massaging head at every opportunity

pressing head into a pillow or perhaps the chest of a loved one

resting torso on the table if they can’t get a better place to rest

rubbing head

squeezing eyes shut

staying in bed all day

trying the most obscure headache relief hacks they can think off (it doesn’t work, but it keeps them busy)

turning head away from bright lights

Anyways, it was based off the fact that I finally got a SAK, broke my nail on it a billion times, thought "I should write that happening to Mac!" immediately followed by "I can't just write a fic about Mac breaking his nail, what kind of story would that be?" and then long story short I ended up with this. (Full fic on Ao3!)

****

When Mac’s nail split, he was surprised first and foremost. He blinked down at his pointer finger, the white line streaking through the nail, the drop of blood welling up at its deepest part, the SAK responsible closed up and innocent in his other hand. The mechanism was stiff, the knife blade resistant to being pulled out and his fingernail too weak to force it. His nail had bent and the knife had snicked back into the SAK.

He thought; weird, that’s never happened to me.

Then he thought; new SAK.

Jack was hovering, standing over his shoulder, jittery and practically dancing from foot to foot. Distant gunfire was getting closer. Mac stared at his SAK, except it wasn’t his SAK. It looked the same, same glossy red finish, same tools, same muscle memory, but it wasn’t. An inconsequential difference, but one that made it fail him when he needed it.

Jack got antsier, obviously watching over Mac’s shoulder and on the verge of commenting on his inaction. Mac clamped his teeth on the metal and pulled the knife out, then he got to work sawing through the fabric sack in front of him.

Overall it was just a small hiccup that no one commented on, Jack had been the only one close enough to catch it anyways. The mission progressed as was typical for them, guns and hijinks and bickering. They got to exfil in one piece and Jack napped most of the flight home.

With Jack’s snoring combatting the sound of the helicopter blades, Mac tilted his hand to look at where the sparse drops of blood had crusted into the crease on the side of his nail. Given a couple days it would be good as new. At the end of the day it was just an inconvenience and a broken nail.

///

“You know, most of the time when a teacher says a student just isn’t applying themselves, they’re talking out of their ass.” Mac’s grandfather was cleaning dishes in the kitchen, calling back over his shoulder to where Mac was poking at his food in the dining room. “But I know you have plenty of brains—“

Mac smiled to himself.

“—so it’s your work ethic that’s the problem.”

Mac’s smile dropped and he scowled at his plate. “You’re acting like I’m failing my classes. I still got mostly A’s.”

“You got a C in chemistry, I thought you liked that subject.”

“My teacher has it out for me, honestly.” Mac pushed clumps of rice in a circle. “I think she still holds what happened in lab last semester against me. She keeps such a close eye on me now that I don’t get to even have any fun with it.”

“It’s not about having fun, it’s about learning.”

“I don’t see why it can’t be both.” Mac shot over a playful smile, but his grandfather returned nothing but a disapproving frown.

“You have to take your education seriously.” Harry slung a rag over his shoulders and moved over to sit opposite of Mac at the round table. “With a head like yours you can get far, but you need to keep it focused on the right things, like your education not your fun.”

“What, so I can end up like my dad?”

“You think that’s a bad thing?”

Mac scowled and looked back down at his plate. “If I want to make a bunch of money in some important job then no. If I want to be a good dad then yes, yes it is.”

Harry was quiet for a long moment before sighing, as if Mac’s simmering resentment was a troublesome thing. He didn’t comment on it any further, but there was a kind of frown on his face that implied he could if he wanted to.

Mac finished up his last few bites in silence, just the scrape of his silverware against the plate and the quiet drumming of Harry’s fingers on the table. When he stood up Harry raised his hand to stop him.

“Angus…”

“What now, you want to chew me out on my biology grade too?”

Harry’s face was completely flat and unamused. “I got a call from the school that they had to confiscate your SAK after you were using it to damage school property.”

Mac set his plate back down with a clatter. “I was fixing the clock! It was running fast, I was sick of being marked tardy for class when—”

“Angus.” Harry cut off, wearily. “To be clear, I don’t care.”

Mac pressed his lips thinly together, suffocating his numerous complaints. He knew that when his grandfather said that, he meant it. Any litany of defenses — however valid — were going to fall on deaf ears.

“You have a responsibility.” Harry emphasized.

“You sound like Uncle Ben.” Mac snarked back.

“Sit down.” Harry ordered. Mac frowned but obeyed. Harry dug into his shirt pocket and pulled out the SAK, setting it on the table between them. “Your mind means that you’re capable of a lot of things, and I gave you this tool to foster that, but I need to know that you’re going to be using it wisely and responsibly — not to get out of minor inconveniences. You need to start thinking ahead, kid.”

“But—“

“—If I give this back to you, can you promise me that you’ll do that?” Harry exaggerated the word, weary but unyielding.

Mac glanced down at the SAK sitting against the light, worn, wood of the table.

“I’ll be more careful.” Mac finally promised, subdued.

1. The FBI's Famous Cases & Criminals archive (fbi.gov/history/famous-cases) has detailed breakdowns of real fraud cases, Ponzi schemes, and confidence operations. The language they use is clinical and precise, which is perfect for getting the procedural details right.

2. The FTC Consumer Sentinel Network publishes annual reports on the most common fraud tactics in the US. Great for understanding how modern scams actually work and what makes people fall for them.

3. The Smithsonian's American Art Museum has a free digital collection of forgery case studies. If your character forges documents or art, this is gold.

4. Court Listener (courtlistener.com) is a free legal database where you can read actual court transcripts from fraud trials. Want to know how a real con artist talks under oath? This is where you find out.

5. The Internet Archive's collection of old newspaper crime sections. Search for "confidence man" or "swindle" in papers from the 1920s through 1960s and you'll find incredible real stories that would feel too dramatic for fiction.

Bonus: The Psychology of Fraud section on the Association for Psychological Science website has accessible articles about why people trust, how deception works cognitively, and what makes someone a convincing liar. Essential reading if you want your con artist characters to feel psychologically real.